Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC) delivered the first C909 aircraft to Lao Airlines on March 30th, 2025. This is the first time for a China-made passenger jet to enter the Lao market, marking a new step in the international development of China’s commercial aircraft.

This C909 aircraft has a registration number of RDPL-34229, and has a 90-seat all-economy class layout. The interior and exterior identifications and placards are in Laotian, the exterior painting is custom-designed, and the tail is printed with Champa flower, the national flower of Laos. It is delivered to Lao Airlines on a lease basis, and will enter into route operation after a series of preparatory work is completed in Laos.

C909 aircraft is a turbofan regional jet independently developed by China. It has a range of 2,225 to 3,700 kilometers, and is capable of operating on most domestic routes in Laos and surrounding international routes. In addition, C909 aircraft has good high-temperature performance and can take off and land on short and narrow runways, showing strong adaptability to the operating environment in Southeast Asia. Up to now, a total of 162 C909 aircraft have been delivered, which have accumulatively served in 645 routes in 158 cities, and safely carried more than 20 million passengers.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Laos issued an Aircraft Type Acceptance Certificate (ATC) for the C909 aircraft to COMAC on March 18th, 2025, indicating that the aircraft has met the basic conditions for commercial operation in Laos. COMAC has set up a special team to assist Lao Airlines with preparatory tasks, including manual preparation, personnel training, aviation material support, and maintenance capacity building. COMAC has also dispatched a support team of professionals from the flight, cabin crew, operation control, maintenance, and other areas to fully ensure the safe and efficient operation of the C909 aircraft in Laos.

COMAC release